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2020 NRL Season Restart

callmack1

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Greenberg was the first NRL head to roll. He won’t be the last as cost-cutting ‘purge’ begins: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...g/news-story/8536f03947241f1304dc7e6f80a8076a

More to follow Greenberg in ‘cost-cutting’ purge as V’landys responds to calls to run the NRL: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...9/news-story/5e238a4f98d9822597cf6e1d7a2cd194

Play Origin at end of NRL Season - Meninga: https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/play-o...-meninga/986cabe0-937a-4c0d-bf72-bdd6efbb7450
 

callmack1

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Why players' wellbeing a priority more than ever during pandemic: https://www.nrl.com/news/2020/04/21/why-players-wellbeing-a-priority-more-than-ever-during-pandemic/

Some NRL players may be forced to become semi-pro, Phil Gould says: https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/some-p...l-gallen/21a6f9f5-d0a3-4bc3-b544-c4fc66ee19c4

Five nights of Footy! Plan to kick off Season with Monday night western Sydney derby: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...y/news-story/5c9e4e5da3c2bea3088984c8f1723223

Project Apollo meeting to go ahead, but new NRL Season structure faces delay: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...9/news-story/5e238a4f98d9822597cf6e1d7a2cd194

Five nights of Footy to re-start the Season will be incredibly good!! I'm all for that! Bit frustrating that yet again, there's gonna be more delays on a decision about Season structure though.
 

callmack1

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From the Daily Telegraph,

There is still much to be done before the NRL can possibly return

As rugby league attempts to rise from the ashes of the disastrous Todd Greenberg administration, the game must conquer numerous financial catastrophes if it is to return on May 28th.

The mood inside League Central on Tuesday, a day after the boss failed to return, was about as solemn as a Supreme Court photograph.

NRL head of football Graham Annesley had his weekly meeting with his football staff over Zoom and the questions were a little more urgent but he had few answers for them.

They wanted to know when they were needed back at work and how many games the new competition would have, when was Origin going to be played, and Annesley’s answer was the same as it was around the rest of the game.

Nobody knows anything until ARL Commission chairman Peter V’landys and the broadcasters, Channel 9 and Fox Sports, have reached some sort of resolution about what the revised broadcast deal looks like.

Clubs are asking the same questions as Annesley’s staff.

Several Sydney clubs began talking to staff on Tuesday about possible resumption dates but each was the same. The conversations were light on detail.

Just who and how many are required, and when they will be needed, can’t be decided until someone has some kind of idea what the resumed competition looks like.

It is for these reasons the new broadcast negotiations will be done in record time.

There is now just 36 days until the competition is scheduled to return.

V’landys met with Foxtel chief executive Patrick Delany and will meet with Channel 9 boss Hugh Marks as early as Wednesday.

Once he has the positions of each broadcaster they will come together in the hope of finding common ground.

It is hoped there will be a resolution as early as Friday.

If so, it will be some kind of small miracle. Tens of millions of dollars are at stake and rarely are decisions made so quickly.

Already the talk is of a significant cut to this year’s broadcast deal. The NRL will counter with an offer of more money and, as a trade, the potential to extend the current contract, potentially with some of the money from the final year to be paid upfront now.

Marks has already spoken of as much and it is a position the NRL is comfortable making.

The revised broadcast deal will be the first financial reset the game will undertake.

The clubs are pushing for more financial transparency, which V’landys has promised.

The salary cap will be taken to with some kind of heavy machinery and football departments will be slashed considerably.

The hope is that by the end of it the NRL and clubs and players settle on a fair position, and a sustainable one.

It might be a great move forward for the game.

The NRL has carried the perception since the Commission era began that clubs could not be trusted with their own money and so should be kept safe from themselves.

Only the NRL began carrying on with the same financial deception it labelled the clubs with.

It began unravelling this year when the COVID-19 crisis hit and the NRL announced it had $104 million in the bank. Clubs were told another $25 million in receivables brought the amount to $129 million. The clubs felt nervous but confident.

I am sure that, at this time, the NRL had no idea the severity of what was about to hit so felt comfortable speaking with a little bravado.

But then the true figures came out.

The $129 million included a $49 million deferred liability payment to be paid back by 2022. The $25 million in receivables was realistically only $15 million.

So the $129 million was really $70 million.

Then it got worse.

The players asked for access to their hardship fund, given it was a full-blown crisis.

The NRL had to reveal it had not actually been banking their money. The agreement, they limply pointed out, was that the money had to be in their account at the end of the broadcast cycle.

Elsewhere, the clubs, because the NRL believed they could not be trusted, were ordered to pay money each season into a distressed clubs fund.

Again, with the clubs in some distress, the NRL did not have it either.

Everyone knows the NRL pays the clubs $13 million a season, which should be more than enough with a salary cap under $10 million.

But the club grant is back-ended in much the same way the NRL has been critical of clubs back-ending player contracts.

Funding in 2018 was $12.567 million, growing incrementally each year until the 2022 grant of $13.633 million.

But even from that the NRL claws back a significant amount in forced payments on the clubs that undermined the relationship.

Each year each club is asked to pay $110,000 for statistics, $178,000 for the NRL’s digital department, $150,000 for career-ending hardship fund, $188,000 for distressed club reserves and $60,000 cash after the NRL put a clause in for clubs to save money each year.

The NRL also stopped funding clubs from taking games to regional areas, making clubs not only have to pay for taking games away but obligating them to pay for the referees’ equipment, too.

They also reduced each club’s merchandise royalties from 40 per cent to 20 per cent, which worked out to be about an extra $60,000 in cash stripped from each club.

That is nearly three-quarters of a million dollars clubs never get to see for services, some of which they don’t even want.

But the NRL is in the insult business.

So when the clubs and NRL negotiated a $1.21 million rescue package last month, to get them through May, April and June, the NRL held back $23,000 from each club, banking only $1.187 million into each club’s bank accounts on April 1.

V’landys needed to intervene to force the NRL to pay its own clubs the amount they had agreed to pay.

So he comes together this week, with Delany and Marks, hoping to get done in a week what it usually takes many more months to get done.

The entire game is hoping they get it done.
 

Arucard

Juniors
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589
Looks like at the end of all this, we're going to be stuck with 9 long term. You can bet that they'll have a greater say in things too. ugh..... both parties need a fresh start away from each other.
 

callmack1

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NRL 'definitely' restarting on May 28, clubs to resume training soon - Pearce: https://www.rabbitohs.com.au/news/2...-may-28-clubs-to-resume-training-soon-pearce/

How friggin good is this news?!! Green light from the government, it's all go for May 28!! So happy right now!

NSWRL announces plan for community league return on July 18: https://www.rabbitohs.com.au/news/2...-plan-for-community-league-return-on-july-28/

NRL locks in May 28 return as all non-NSW teams forced to relocate: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...9/news-story/5e238a4f98d9822597cf6e1d7a2cd194

Phil Gould breaks down reality of extended NRL Season, Post-Season Origin: https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/phil-g...portance/6b177340-81c8-4042-a321-cb00be6a0d87
 

callmack1

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Everything you need to know about 2020 Season return: https://www.nrl.com/news/2020/04/22/everything-you-need-to-know-about-2020-season-return/

Coronavirus NRL updates - V'landys - Warriors will be back in Australia by May 4: https://www.nrl.com/news/2020/03/21/coronavirus-nrl-news-latest-updates/

Here we go - Clubs and players respond to confirmed May 28 return: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...n/news-story/74137aa612aebda5c3d4bd5a0e7c66e5

NRL points to stand for unbeaten six with training to resume on May 4: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...s/news-story/488c5fa641d02daa191e89516d685085

Queensland teams hopeful of not relocating as NRL considers 20 Round competition: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...g/news-story/0eb99b472c69546b2d4b0f20fad1824b

Everything you need to know about the NRL Season restart on May 28: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...8/news-story/ac688cec86d4dd86a030f67434a8afef

Edgy NRL clubs wait on biosecurity rules: https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/nrl-cl...-details/d7bfa3d5-341d-4a27-b41b-5e5d62a8f987

Peter V'landys opens up on 'brutal' broadcast negotiations with Nine, Todd Greenberg exit: https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/peter-...erg-exit/6e13082f-2d47-483a-89db-38f56b36e0ce

Brad Fittler urges NRL clubs to stop wasting money amid financial crisis: https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/brad-f...ignation/3d1b5aa1-32f9-4375-b068-d7b2e379d6ba
 

callmack1

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Clubs ‘concerned’ as NRL sends spies to training with strict new rules not finalised: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...d/news-story/c3c0e31feb92cf8fcb83e62e124fec1b

From Sporting News,

RLPA demand further clarity over NRL's return as May 28th date is confirmed

The Rugby League Players’ Association (RLPA) have remained defiant on their call for further clarity surrounding the competition's return after the NRL gained government approval to resume on May 28th.

Following meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday with clubs and various government officials, the NRL's Project Apollo confirmed the season would resume on the May 28th date it had set out, and that clubs would be free to commence training on May 4th.

With all interstate teams set to enter isolation in Sydney, the NRL will now set out to define thorough biosecurity protocols that will carry strict fines for players and clubs if they're not obeyed.

Newtown insisted that although the players remain committed to returning to training, they require further clarity around measures surrounding player health and safety before the dates can be considered final.

“The return to training and playing dates for the NRL competition remain unconfirmed at this stage as players require clarity on a range of areas,” Newton said in an RLPA statement released on Wednesday.

“While we remain optimistic and committed to working through a thorough process which will see players return go training and playing, our priorities that we have continually outlined over the past few weeks have not changed, nor has our desire to get the competition back up and running.

“We have communicated with our player representatives earlier today and reaffirmed this position with the Innovation Committee and the NRL this evening following inconsistent media comments.

“The NRL have clarified that the Project Apollo committee will continue to work towards these resumption dates in their statement tonight.

“These fundamental areas include assurances and protections relating to the health and safety of our members.

“The outstanding matters, such as confirmation that players will have access to the appropriate medical facilities and services should they be injured, are paramount before reaching a definitive return date.

“The collaborative process between the NRL, Clubs and players remains critical in ensuring we make informed decisions in what is a challenging landscape.”

The NRL will now set out to confirm the format under which the competition will continue, as it prepares to meet with all 16 club coaches on Thursday.

Teams from outside of NSW will now look to map out their return to training with only two weeks remaining until they're forced to enter isolation before the season's resumption.

The re-confirmation of the NRL season's May 28th return comes just days after CEO Todd Greenberg was sensationally stood down from his role.
 

callmack1

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NRL planning to send spies to clubs as Bennett cancels sessions

By Michael Chammas
April 22, 2020 — 7.10pm

South Sydney coach Wayne Bennett has cancelled planned training sessions for next week as the NRL considers sending independent spies into clubs to ensure biosecurity protocols are being followed.

With speculation rife that several clubs were planning secret sessions next week, and that some teams may have already breached government rules, the NRL emphasised the severity of punishments that would be applied during a phone hook-up with clubs on Wednesday afternoon.

The NRL threatened to dock competition points and hand down heavy fines for those clubs in breach of the rules.

It comes as ARLC chairman Peter V'landys met with Channel Nine chief executive Hugh Marks at the network's Willoughby offices on Wednesday morning to continue discussions around a potential three-year broadcast rights extension with the current partners.

Marks later met with Foxtel boss Patrick Delany, with the game's powerbrokers hopeful of broadcast clarity in time for Friday's innovation committee meeting pencilled in to discuss the season structure.

Interim chief executive Andrew Abdo confirmed to clubs that "long term security" was a priority in discussions with its broadcast partners but wouldn't comment on the negotiation.

Bennett, who was part of Wednesday's innovation committee meeting, denied his club would return prior to the agreed May 4 training date after Rabbitohs hooker Damien Cook let slip that his teammates had been assigned to small group sessions next week.

"I was there today and we all agreed what we are going to do," Bennett said of the 'Project Apollo' meeting.

"We (South Sydney) put some plans in place last week not knowing what the future held. We were just trying to get ahead of the game and put temporary plans in place subject to today's meeting. They will be changing now.

"All the clubs would have been in the same boat, making plans around next week until we got told what was happening. We are all pretty adamant that we need to start on the same day. We will be waiting for the Warriors.

"If we don't follow those rules, we will lose points or be fined - it's as simple as that. It won't be happening at Souths. I'm more than happy with that. I think it's really good the way we are approaching it as a game. There are a lot of protocols around what we are doing."

The NRL is pushing ahead with plans for a May 28 competition restart, with NRL head of football Graham Annesley breaking down a 50-page biosecurity report to send to clubs on Friday.

As part of the strict measures that will be introduced, the NRL is designing an app that will monitor players' temperatures and health.

The NRL is also considering sending independent experts to ensure clubs are complying with the rules, and will report back to head office with major breaches if there is complete disregard for the measures in place.

Wednesday's series of meetings also determined that:

The competition points and differential accrued in the opening two rounds will remain.
Proposal put forward to begin season playing out of two venues (ANZ Stadium and Bankwest) until border restrictions are relaxed.
No back-to-back games at same venue. Any matches at the same venue must be separated by two hours to ensure sanitation procedure. First and third game on Saturdays could be played at same venue.
Traditional format (no conference system) with length of season to be determined as early as Friday.
Limiting training to a squad of just 30 players and 15 staff.
The potential cancellation or postponement of Cricket World Cup could be a boost to the NRL's broadcast deal.
 

callmack1

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Blake Solly Members Address: https://www.rabbitohs.com.au/news/2020/04/23/blake-solly-members-address/

RLPA happy to 'adjust goalposts' on May 28 return if necessary: https://www.nrl.com/news/2020/04/23/rlpa-happy-to-adjust-goalposts-on-may-28-return-if-necessary/

Next step - NRL's safety measures being put to clubs, RLPA: https://www.nrl.com/news/2020/04/23/next-step-nrls-safety-measures-being-put-to-clubs-rlpa/

COVID-19 NRL updates - PM's NZ border plan boosts Warriors hopes: https://www.nrl.com/news/2020/03/21/coronavirus-nrl-news-latest-updates/

Acting NRL CEO assures staff jobs are safe days after Greenberg warned of redundancies: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...s/news-story/14f2e6e3ab8e6f8f88dd986ed0a974cf

NRL Season could be stretched to 22 weeks, sources say: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...d/news-story/c3c0e31feb92cf8fcb83e62e124fec1b

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton to talk to Peter V'landys over Warriors' return: https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/peter-...warriors/86749e37-e311-4102-93be-dfe67c29ee1a

Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk demands detailed plan from NRL 'sooner the better': https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/nrl-ne...res-back/b63fcaac-a611-4e2a-b179-6b2e59c34219

Project Apollo representative Troy Grant hits back at Queensland premier's claims: https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/projec...n-claims/2d0535ad-e825-4022-a0e8-d5d4b4c69257

Players open to NRL going late in year: https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/player...-in-year/714176ff-fedb-4dc4-9f14-bd1fbc60c7b9
 

callmack1

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Mal Meninga calls for longer NRL Season or winless sides have no chance: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...e/news-story/ebd6df8ef5b378780607415022e40ee2

'Football is not an essential service': Infectious disease experts divided over 'premature' NRL return: https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/nrl-co...y-return/cc148a99-3ae3-43d5-ad09-c03e04189a31

V'landys addresses early return: https://wwos.nine.com.au/videos/nrl/vlandys-addresses-early-return/ck9dab8xf003i0hqvda45bndq

On ya V'Landys!! Looks like he's sick of the procrastination and a decision will be made today!
 

callmack1

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Channel Nine slams brakes on 'premature' May 28 NRL restart

By Michael Chammas
April 23, 2020 — 6.42pm

The NRL's road to resumption has hit another roadblock, with broadcast partner Channel Nine describing the proposed May 28 restart date as "premature".

Just 24 hours after ARL commissioner Wayne Pearce boldly declared the NRL season would "definitely" resume on May 28, the code's free-to-air partner has slammed the brakes on plans that have 16 clubs preparing to return to training in just over a week's time.

"Although we agree constructive discussions have been held between the NRL, Nine and Foxtel, we feel it's premature to be confirming a start date at this stage," a Nine spokesperson said.

"There is a great will to work together to an outcome but a lot of work still to do. A deal needs to be completed and the structure of the competition locked, which importantly must include how it will operate within the health-and-safety standards currently affecting the community."

The NRL had pencilled in another Project Apollo meeting for Friday, which has now been postponed, in the hope broadcast negotiations would progress to the point that it would be able to map out the structure of the 2020 season.

However, plans around a restart date and the machinations of how the season would work appear at the moment to be moot.

Nine, the publisher of this masthead, hasn't ruled out a May 28 restart but is determined to finalise arrangements around a potential new three-year broadcast extension before it concerns itself with the details of this year.

Pearce's comments on Wednesday afternoon, declaring the game would "definitely" return on May 28, surprised Nine powerbrokers, who were of the opinion the negotiations had not progressed to the point of determining a set date.

Pearce said on Wednesday: "We clarified that May 28 is a definite and also confirmed that May 4 is the resumption date for training. Everyone is supportive of what we're doing. Everyone is unified into getting back on the field."

Everyone, that is, except the free-to-air broadcaster and key people in government. The NRL still doesn't know whether teams from outside NSW will be able to stay at home to train, or whether the Warriors can even start training at all.

“I’m saying to NRL, send the detailed plan, send all of your health information, send how it’s all going to work," Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said on Thursday.

“Put it in a detailed plan and I’m more than happy to forward it to [Queensland chief health officer] Dr [Jeannette] Young. Dr Young has said today she’s more than happy to consider it.

“I think they’ve been dealing with the NSW government and I think they need to submit it to all other governments that have NRL teams.”

Pearce's comments outside of Rugby League Central were made at around the same time interim NRL CEO Andrew Abdo and chief operating officer Nick Weeks dialled in 16 club chief executives to tell them nothing had been locked in.

Nine minutes into the call an NRL.com push notification was sent out to almost half a million app subscribers, including a few of the digitally minded CEOs on the phone hook-up, declaring the season was "definitely" back on May 28.

By the time the CEOs had finished being told that there were few, if any, certain answers to their questions, most of their own media departments, taking their lead from Pearce's comments, had put up a series of social media posts with the opposite messaging, declaring the season was back.

Rugby League Players Association boss Clint Newton, who is on the innovation committee with Pearce, seemed perplexed by his comments.

"I certainly think we’ve got a level of responsibility to anyone that’s associated, in particular with that Project Apollo group, that when we come out of those meetings what we’re saying is a true reflection of where we landed," Newton said on Thursday.

Only a few hours prior to Pearce's comments, ARLC chairman Peter V'landys made the trip to Nine's Willoughby headquarters to meet with boss Hugh Marks, who later in the day held a separate meeting with Foxtel chief executive Patrick Delany.

But Pearce's summation of the day's decisions didn't match Marks' interpretation of negotiations that had taken place.

That does not mean V'landys, Delany and Marks will fail to reach a consensus on the terms of a new TV deal and the resumption of the competition. May 28 is still possible, if unlikely.
 

callmack1

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ARLC boss launches stunning attack on ‘scaremongering and alarmist’ Channel Nine: https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nr...y/news-story/16474298e8b12ee3aa1c948e0d12cbd1

Andrew Johns wants NRL to take America opportunity with return: https://wwos.nine.com.au/nrl/nrl-ne...osure-us/14838a95-149d-4ea8-94aa-e0034df7aacf

From Zero Tackle,

Standby players added to team lists as cover for positive coronavirus test

With the NRL season set to be re-launched within the next month, The Sydney Morning Herald is reporting that NRL clubs will be able to have 20 players available for selection an hour before games in case of any positive coronavirus tests.

The NRL have re-activated its workload-balance committee to ensure that the NRL safety protocols are being taken seriously as the competition looks to resume on May 28.

On Thursday, the committee met via video conference and outlined several possibilities that will be negotiated with the Project Apollo team. One of those is extending the squad number from 30 to 32 to ensure the safety and depth of the teams in case of any positive coronavirus cases.

Also being discussed is a cap on the amount of support staff each team can bring to games, with between 12 and 14 members being discussed to minimise the risk of infection. During trainings, that number could increase from anywhere between 14-18 people should each adhere to the safety precautions set out by the NRL.

Brisbane coach Anthony Seibold has been added to the committee to give a coach’s perspective on the situation, while RLPA chief executive Kelly Egan has also been added to the committee.

RLPA representative Simon Roberts has also been added to a group that is led by Kangaroos high-performance manager Troy Thompson and includes Storm football boss Frank Ponissi, Wests Tigers performance manager Andrew Gray, NRL welfare and education manager Paul Heptonstall and NRL chief medical officer Dr Paul Bloomfield.

That group, who report to NRL head of football Graham Annesley and RLPA boss Clint Newton, spoke for a good two and a half hours on Thursday before ultimately getting the proper recommendation of draft numbers.

“It’s been really pleasing to see the willingness of everyone to help out and co-operate,” Thompson said.

“Nobody has an agenda. It’s important that everyone is on the same page from the coaches, the players, the staff, the NRL and the commission. The big thing is that everyone is speaking into the same microphone, we’ve all got the same voice and are saying the same thing.

“A few working groups will be diving into the detail over the next 10 days. A lot hinges on whether teams can travel. We have an anomaly with the Warriors because they are geographically removed from everyone else.

“We have to be able to afford them the same guidelines and consideration as everyone else.”
 
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